SouthboundYank

Thx for posting this -- these are some of my favorite flowers and I've always wondered what they were called! With those colors, I'll BET the hummingbirds love them...I know several folks have discussed it in recent months, but I'm bound determined to invest in a hummingbird feeder THIS spring and start coaxing them to visit.

We got up to 69 at the peak yesterday afternoon...I think that was a bust-high from the forecast. Needless to say, we lapped it up...did a long walk outside, and then found many reasons to be putzing around outside the house and in the yards just to BE outside. Wowzers, what a day.

Pics, @Kay, pics please! Here or in the Winter Pics thread!

The underground hydraulics ARE unreal...in fact, two houses adjacent to that drainage ditch splitting the neighborhood were lost/condemned due to one of those hundred-year rain events in the past decade. We moved into this house in 2002 and immediately noticed that, even with all of the fresh paint, minor cracks in walls, joints and some doorways began to appear...the cracks would ebb and flow, depending on how dry or wet the weather was, and that all continues to this day. To your point about the earthquake...all those cracks disappeared on that shaky day, at least for a number of months. The absolute worst -- 3rd or 4th year living here, we noticed some especially nasty cracks appearing between the original house and the 20' x 30' addition built off the back...and because the original owner DID NOT lay a proper slab foundation under the addition (he essentially walled in a formerly screened porch!), the addition was literally pulling AWAY from the house. For the bargain price of just over $20K, we had to invest in 10 of those augur piles shoring up OUR addition. Lost huge swaths of decent backyard grass, two patios and lots of mature landscaping around the addition due to the construction. Thanks, former owner....oh, and shitty marine clay, too.

In fairness to you and your efforts in autumn -- same thing happens to ME every year. I'll have every damn leaf picked up from every inch of front/back/side yards...and come Jan/Feb, there'll be small, wind-swirled piles of leaves all OVER every damn part of those yards. I'm sure it's from all the surrounding yards, because I'm PRETTY good about getting up all the leaves by mid-December. UGH. Given today's temps....I might even have to crack the window in my home office.

This is a unique sub, focused on a niche topic. And quite possibly the most unforgiving, IF you aren't willing to lurk and "read the room" for "awhile." The length of "awhile" depends on 1) how well you read the room, 2) how well you contribute, and 3) how your contributions are received. I've observed many folks over the years wade in here with theIr Facebook-style, grenade-posting approach...and pay dearly for it. I was a mostly silent member here for over a decade before starting to wade in about a year ago, contributing some discussion to obs and some stupid memes to banter. I've light years to go when it comes to reading model tea leaves in LR and severe discussions, so almost always keep my trap shut in those threads...reading, learning, reading more, offering reactions, listening, etc. One of the most important things I've learned at AmWx is to be aware of WHAT you're saying, WHERE you're saying it -- if there's a banter-ish comment in a LR thread that I feel a burning need to comment on in a banter-ish or smartass manner, I'll quote it and bring it over to banter so that the LR wonks can keep doing their thing without my probably-not-relevant banter getting in the way THERE. As @Bob Chill said earlier in a larger context...location is always relevant on the internet. I've loved tracking/observing wx since I was a kid...but learned to love it more, and predict it better, here over the past decade. Yes, you really should. I've seen a few relatives including my mom suffer with it several times over the years -- my mom even had it in her EYES (who knew that was a thing?) at one point. Anyway, it was all enough to prompt me to get the shots. Fair warning -- there tends to be a variable reaction to shingles shots. I had an abbreviated, 24-hour version of full-on flu after each of my shingles shots...brief but miserable. YMMV.

It really has. I couldn't help myself and took another, closer glance at that listing. Forget the "main" house...the guest house is MORE than twice the square footage of my own. But buried down toward the bottom of the breathlessly worded description was a fair amount of "geotechnical stabilization" talk....140 augur cast piles installed along the shoreline, 15 40-foot deep caissons installed on the house's foundation. Given the foundation, underground pipe and general runoff issues that plague Hayfield Farm due to widespread marine clay...I'm quite sure I wouldn't want to live any closer to the Potomac than this. You're uphill from me a good bit...and hopefully y'all don't have to deal with the damnable marine clay.

I know, right? I've seen that listing before when it went on the market...while clearly professionally photographed, it is a breathtaking property. The amenities and views would make former neighbor George Washington himself blush. I forget sometimes that there's a whole other level of "living" going on, even just a few miles away my own 1250 square foot "hovel."

Perhaps. But I always look forward to how much and in what ways you, @Kay and @mattie g throw your money into the ground around this time of year...

Of course he did...what an ostentatious, status-obsessed bag of douche...

Yeah. Surprisingly chilly this afternoon. Really wanted to get myself AND the doggo out on a big walk this afternoon, but with the breeze and current conditions(31/3, gusts up to 10 mph), I can't even. :/

I loved this. Her experiences on this trip...and the way she documented them...reminded me of a few things: the first time I flew as a pre-teen between Pittsburgh and Tampa, my first trip flying into DCA on Fathers Day 1988 for my permanent move to this area, etc. She's probably flown a number of times before this, but I love how she captures each stage of the journey. I'm not a videographer, and I don't know what I'm talking about....but I did love this. She has a knack, and I'm sure she will do well in this arena...what an exciting time of her life.

Yep, me, too. My wife and I did a double-take at a very young maple sapling on midday Saturday (obviously, a warmer-than-usual day)....which certainly appeared to be popping a decent number of buds. It still seems premature, but wow. Allergy season seems to begin earlier and earlier....

Yeah, I swear SOMETHING is pollenating right now. My allergies have been bothering me the last week or so...coinciding with all of the extra time we've been spending outside on longer evening walks. Could be the mold of rotting leaves bugging me, too, given that we do most of our walks through adjacent wetland.

I peek at Mt. Holly's disco alongside LWX's once or twice a week....but they're not hepped up about this timeframe (yet). .LONG TERM /THURSDAY THROUGH SUNDAY/... The week will end with poor conditions as the next weather system moves towards the area. An upper trough will swing across the Great Lakes and down the St. Lawrence Valley. An accompanying cold front will cross the area Fri morning. Ahead of the system a period of rains and gusty winds will develop. On Friday, temperatures will fall back closer to normal and the rains/snows will end from W to E through Fri night. At this time, it looks to be a mostly rain event with perhaps some minor shows Fri night as the system pulls away. Gusty winds Thu and Thu night could gust 30 to 40 mph at times. The gusty winds will continue behind the front Fri as temperature cool thru the day.

I'll bet. Timing couldn't be worse on this squall...looks on radar like it's sweeping that whole western side of the Baltimore beltway.

Collinsworth's PBP flat out ruined the televised game. Yeah, he's horrible. And always on the verge of sounding like he's going to hock a loog. FFS, clear your throat, man. UGGGGHHH.

So, @CAPE -- Mrs. V and I made a shameless beer run to Weggy's today, and I'll probably be documenting some of the IPAs we picked up this morning later today. However, I forgot to share this one last week from Victory Brewing (based in Downingtown, PA), Imperial Cloud Walker -- it was exceptionally good.

Bring it. Oh, I'll bear-hug the 1-2" of snow we MAY eke out tomorrow -- on Super Bowl Sunday and Valentines Day eve no less! But I'll also be ready for long doggo walks in the evenings mid-late next week where temps are back in the 50s.

I'm assuming but thought I'd confirm -- you're in McHenry for the weekend? Cuz it's definitely not that cold here at the base of Mount Wegmans...

I thought for sure @ravensrule would ninja you with that comment...

Oh yeah. The extra daylight gained between the start and end of January alone improves my attitude by leaps/bounds. It doesn't last long, but I just detest that whole "go to/return from work in the dark" shtick....UGH!

Paging @nj2va....

Agree 200%. We ran into several neighbors and friends on the doggo walk today....folks are all happy and bubbly, and I think the moderate temps had something to do with that today.

I remember vaguely tracking your gardening exploits last growing season -- but don't remember you mentioning the jalapenos. Did you do those last year as well, and if so, how did they do?